Slate-coloured Junco

Not having traveled this month, February hasn’t been the bird-dense month that January was. Still I have enjoyed the sparse bird sightings attainable in our backyard. With only a handful of visiting birds in our yard, my list for February will mostly boil down to Pigeons, Starlings, and Sparrows.

One exception is the quite common — but new to me — Slate-coloured Junco (Junco hyemalis hyemalis) aka the Snowbird. They’re one of the Dark-eyed Juncos. We have seen single birds and small groupings in our neighbour’s cherry tree and jumping lower along our fence line.

I’m going to call it my “Bird of the Month”.

Slate-coloured Junco by Ernest Seton Thompson, from Bird-Life: A Guide to the Study of Our Common Birds, 1900

“Modest in manner and attire, there is nothing of especial interest in the Junco’s habits, and only bird-lovers can understand what a difference his presence makes in a winter landscape. It brings a sense of companionship ; it is a link between us and Nature.”— Frank M. ChapmanBird-Life: A Guide to the Study of Our Common Birds, 1900